Among the most prominent cases of prisoners of conscience is that of Raif Badawi (seen below with his children), who, along with his brother-in-law and lawyer,Waleed Abu al-Khair is still imprisoned in Saudi Arabia.

Let us first examine two notable videos to gain a better understanding of Raif Badawi, and two other imprisoned Saudis: Turki Al-Hamad and Hamza Kashgari

The next video features an informative interview with the wife of Raif Badawi, Ensaf Haidar. She mentions that Raif's writings on his website (Free Saudi Liberals) were about "Freedom of belief, women's rights, human rights," and she shares her own thoughts on Saudi Arabia and Raif's imprisonment.

Highlighting the importance that he attaches to freedom is the very name of the blog that Raif created: Free Saudi Liberals. Raif would post articles to this blog, encouraging a more secular society in Saudi Arabia. But repressive forces in Saudi Arabia fear change, and fear free thought. His articles were admired. Then one dreary June day in 2012, he was arrested by the Saudi government -- the charge was that he had insulted "Islam through electronic channels."And now Raif is imprisoned, waiting, wondering if he shall again be whipped. ​Despite this he retains his magnanimity, stating: "We want life for those who call for our death, and rationality for those who desire ignorance for us."

Since his imprisonment, Raif has won several prominent awards for his fight for human rights, including the prestigious Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in 2015, Let us ponder these particular words Raif said: ""Any religion based state has a mission to limit the minds of its people, to fight the developments of history and logic, and to dumb down its citizens. It's important to stand in the way of such a mentality, to deny it from continuing its mission to murder the souls of its people, killing them deep within while they are still alive and breathing."

Evidently Raif was deeply impressed with this quote from Nobel Laureate Albert Camus, a quote which deeply applies to him: “The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.”

​Waleed Abu al-Khair (below) has as a lawyer represented both Raif Badawi and Raif's sister, Samar, (herself a noted fighter for human rights, and married to Waleed).

Like Raif, Waleed has been imprisoned by the Saudi Government. He was given a 15 year prison sentence for "undermining the regime and officials", "inciting public opinion" and "insulting the judiciary."

Prior to his arrest, Waleed had published numerous articles (300 or so) on human rights & legal issues. Two noteworthy articles he wrote were "Our steadfast pursuit of a freer Saudi Arabia" (for the Washington Post) and Saudis Stymied by Fear.

Due to his struggle for human rights, Waleed has won theLudovic Trarieux International Human Rights Prizeand Sweden's Olof Palme Award, He has also been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

"As a free people, we will keep saying to the unjust, you are unjust!!" -- Waleed Abu al-Khair

Let us reflect on brief summaries from the report describing recent events in Muslim-majority nations that affected freedom of expression, promotion of human rights, and the extent of legal & governmental sanctions placed upon activists.

​Indonesia:Security forces faced allegations of human rights violations, including the use of unnecessary or excessive force. Arbitrary arrests of peaceful protesters, especially in Papua, occurred throughout the year. The government restricted activities marking the 50th anniversary of the serious human rights violations of 1965-1966. Harassment, intimidation and attacks against religious minorities occurred throughout the country.Nigeria:The conflict between the military and the armed group Boko Haram continued, resulting in the deaths of thousands of civilians and over 2 million internally displaced people (IDPs) at the end of the year. Torture and other ill-treatment by the police and security forces were widespread. Demolitions of informal settlements led to the forced eviction of thousands of people.Pakistan:A new National Human Rights Commission was established with a mandate to promote and protect human rights, but was restricted from investigating allegations of human rights abuses against the intelligence agencies. Religious minorities continued to face discrimination, persecution and targeted attacks. Human rights activists experienced harassment and abuse. In March, Baloch activists were barred from leaving the country to speak at a conference in the USA about human rights violations in Balochistan and Sindh.Bangladesh:Dozens of people were killed when passenger buses and other vehicles were attacked with petrol bombs in the context of anti-government campaigns. Hundreds of opposition supporters were detained for various periods, at times on politically motivated grounds. Independent media came under severe pressure and freedom of expression was restricted. At least nine secularist bloggers and publishers were attacked, five of whom died from their injuries. More than 40 people were subjected to enforced disappearance.Iran:The authorities severely curtailed the rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly, arresting and imprisoning journalists, human rights defenders, trade unionists and others who voiced dissent, on vague and overly broad charges. Torture and other ill-treatment of detainees remained common and was committed with impunity; prison conditions were harsh. Unfair trials continued, in some cases resulting in death sentences. Women and members of ethnic and religious minorities faced pervasive discrimination in law and in practice. The authorities carried out cruel punishments, including blinding, amputation and floggings. Courts imposed death sentences for a range of crimes; many prisoners, including at least four juvenile offenders, were executed.Turkey:The human rights situation deteriorated markedly following parliamentary elections in June and the outbreak of violence between the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Turkish armed forces in July. The media faced unprecedented pressure from the government; free expression online and offline suffered significantly. The right to freedom of peaceful assembly continued to be violated. Cases of excessive use of force by police and ill-treatment in detention increased. Impunity for human rights abuses persisted.Egypt:The human rights situation continued to deteriorate. The authorities arbitrarily restricted the rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly, enacted a draconian new anti-terrorism law, and arrested and imprisoned government critics and political opposition leaders and activists, subjecting some to enforced disappearance. The security forces used excessive force against protesters, refugees, asylum-seekers and migrants. Detainees faced torture and other ill-treatment. Courts handed down hundreds of death sentences and lengthy prison sentences after grossly unfair mass trials. There was a critical lack of accountability; most human rights violations were committed with impunity. Women and members of religious minorities were subject to discrimination and inadequately protected against violence. People were arrested and tried on charges of “debauchery” for their perceived sexual orientation or gender identity. Saudi Arabia:The government continued to severely restrict freedoms of expression, association and assembly. The authorities arrested, prosecuted and imprisoned human rights defenders and government critics, including under the 2014 anti-terror law, often after unfair trials. Some of those detained were prisoners of conscience. Torture and other ill-treatment of detainees remained common. Unfair trials continued before the Specialized Criminal Court (SCC), a special court for hearing terrorism-related cases, with some trials resulting in death sentences. Discrimination against the Shi’a minority remained entrenched; some Shi’a activists were on death row awaiting execution. Women faced discrimination in law and in practice and were inadequately protected against sexual and other violence.Sudan: The authorities repressed the media, civil society organizations and opposition political parties, severely curtailing freedoms of expression, association and assembly. Armed conflict in Darfur, South Kordofan and Blue Nile states continued to cause mass displacement and civilian casualties; human rights abuses were perpetrated by all parties to these conflicts. Government forces destroyed civilian buildings, including schools, hospitals and clinics in conflict areas, and obstructed humanitarian access to civilians needing support because of the ongoing hostilities.

Debate Question: Across the countries listed above, one of the underlying themes seems to be that rejection of any dissent is so strong among prominent Muslim-majority countries that it is invariably codified into law, and carried out by repressive government forces. What is it about Islam that makes it so hard for people to fully accept others, and makes it so easy to get angry at those seeking change?

In the map found below, the countries seen in black are the countries in which censorship is notably prevalent and there is an absence of a free press. The nations colored red are just a little less restrictive, but speech and the press are still highly controlled.From:https://rsf.org/en/ranking

The countries in the top third in hostility toward a free media and press are colored in black and (a bit less repressive) in red. ​Comprising a maoritity of all Muslims worldwide are the Muslim-majority nations in this top third. We are struck right away by the preponderance of nations colored black in the Middle East region. Nations like Saudi Arabia, Libya, Iran Syria, Yemen, and Sudan have severe censorship and restrictions on press freedom. Nearby countries, likewise having Muslim-majority populations, countries such as Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Somalia are the same way.Highly populous Indonesia is the most prominent of the Muslim-majority countries with the red color, roughly among the 17% or so of countries in the second tier of censorship. Nigeria, Pakistan is red too, as is Bangladesh. Islamic countries with that red color but a bit less population include Egypt, Algeria, Iraq, Turkey, Kazakhstan, and Oman.The Musiim-majority countries colored orange or yellow (and therefore having a freer media & press) are notably fewer, and tend to be small-population countries. Countries such as Mauritania, Ethiopia, Guinea, and Niger are on this list.

Debate Question: We have learned that Muhammad had put to death poets who wrote harsh, mocking poems about him. Given that Muslims regard Muhammad as a fine role model (showing an "excellent pattern of conduct" -- Quran 33.21) , we have as our Debate Question: Are certain Muslims eager to enact severe penalties against those today who speak out against Muhammad and his religion, because Muhammad himself did the same thing?"

Asma bint Marwan. She composed poems attacking those of her tribe who converted to Islam and allied themselves with Muhammad. She thought very poorly of Muhammad: "do you expect good from (Muhammad) after the killing of your chiefs?" and asked: "Is there no man of pride who would attack him by surprise/ And cut off the hopes of those who expect aught from him?" Muhammad famously responded with, "Who will rid me of Marwan's daughter?" An eager, zealous Muslim took up the call and murdered Asma bint Marwan while she slept.

Abu Afak. More than 100 years old, he was murdered for writing a derogatory poem about Muhammad.

​Uqba bin Abu Muayt. Just before being killed for having written condemnatory verses about Muhammad, he cried, "But who will look after my children, O Muhammad?" Muhammad coldly replied, "Hell!"

Al-Nadr bin al-Harith. He had the audacity to declare about Muhammad and the Quran: "By God, Muhammad cannot tell a better story than I, and his talk is only of old fables which he has copied as I have." When he became a prisoner of war after having tried to protect caravans from Muslims, Muhammad's son-in-law, Ali, had him killed.It should be noted that just like Muhammad, Allah himself hates those who call the Quran "ancient fables" and intends to forever torture these people in hell (see Quran 83:13-16).

Kab bin al-Ashraf. Because Muhammad and his men were robbing the caravans of the Meccans, Meccans sent out an army to try to end this problem. Unfortunately for the Meccans they lost a notable battle at Badr. Witnessing the aftermath of the battle, Kab wrote a poem expressing dejection at the loss of life, and foretelling future marches by the Meccans against Muhammad. Muhammad responded by asking, "Who will rid me of Kab?" Two Muslims did precisely that, even resorting to lying to carry out their murderous plan.

Calls in Pakistan for the death of one "blaspheming" Muhammad (video below):

Iranian activist and journalist Narges Mohammadi has won awards and global plaudits for her human rights advocacy, including her work to end Iran’s use of the death penalty for young offenders. But the 44-year-old mother of two has spent the past year behind bars, serving the remainder of a six-year sentence simply for speaking out. Now Mohammadi, who has an undiagnosed disease affecting her muscle control, faces a further 16 years in jail after being convicted in May of several national security-related offenses tied to her peaceful activism.Iran has fielded harsh criticism from the U.N. and international community for its widespread crackdown on dissent, including hundreds of arrests of activists, journalists and reformists in recent years. The British government called Mohammadi’s arrest for the sentence that landed her back in jail last year “another sad example of the Iranian authorities’ attempts to silence brave human rights defenders.”

Global humanitarian organization Amnesty International has denounced Mohammadi’s imprisonment and latest sentence as an “all out attack” on freedom of expression by Iran’s “abusive” criminal justice system.

“Narges Mohammadi’s sentence is yet another chilling example of Iran’s use of vaguely worded national security charges to crack down on peaceful freedom of expression,” said Amnesty’s Middle East and North Africa director, Philip Luther. “There is no doubt that she is being unjustly punished for her steadfast commitment to human rights.”